Container



10, 1965 J. N. KRAUSE ETAL 3,199,421

CONTAINER Original Filed July 31, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS JAMES A. KRAUSE W/ LIAM L.AHLEMEYER MMZM ATTORNEYS I g 1965 J. N. KRAUSE ETAL CONTAINER 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed July 31, 1962 INVENTOR5 JAMES IV. KRAUSE W/LL/AM L. AHLEMEYER Aug. 10, 1965 J. N. KRAUSE ETAL 3,199,421

CONTAINER Original Filed July 31, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS JAMES /V. KRAUSE W/LL/AM L.AHLEM'YE/? Qa,@i/JQMM ATTORNEYS I United '7 Claims. (or. 93-94 This is a division of patent application Serial No. 213,- 773, filed July 31, 1962.

This invention relates to a container which is constructed to receive a carrying bail. More particularly, it relates to a method for forming a multi-ply container having bail receiving means mounted within the container wall and extending outwardly and opening at the container wall at substantially diametrically opposed positions.

Containers fabricated from several plies of paperboard and laminates of foil and paper and the like have now gained acceptance in the packaging field for all types of products which were formerly packaged only in metal cans. It is an object of this invention to provide a container which retains substantially all the structural strength and fluid-tight properties of these fabricated multi-ply containers and nevertheless incorporates bail receiving means within the container in a novel manner.

The container of the invention is comprised of a substantially rigid body which is adapted to receive a carrying bail and has an end closure cap on at least one end thereof. The body is comprised of a liner piy wound to define the inner surface of the container. At least one ply of body stock is wound about the liner ply and is adhesively secured thereto. A label play is wound about said body ply and is adhesively secured to the body ply to define the outer surface of the container body. Bail receiving means are mounted within the container wall between the body stock and the label ply, and they extend outwardly and open at the container wall at substantially diametrically opposed positions. Usually the container is sufiiciently strong to be manufactured with only one ply of body stock. In this construction the bail receiving means will be contained within the container between the body stock and the label ply and extend outwardly through the label ply. The bail receiving means is also preferably comprised of a tubular portion which extends outwardly from the wall of the container for receiving the bail and a flange portion of greater diameter than the tubular portion which is wholly contained within the container wall.

The liner ply can be formed of aluminum foil and paper laminate with the foil disposed interiorly to define the inner surface of the container. When the foil and paper laminate is used as the liner ply seam it is advantageous to provide a liner ply seam by folding a marginal portion along one side edge back against itself with its foil surface on the outside of the fold. The folded back portion is then overlapped with and adhesively secured to the adjacent marginal portions of an adjoining convolution of the ply in foil-to-foil contact therewith, so that the adjacent convolutions of the ply enclose both side edges of the laminate beneath the foil surface of the container body.

The method is for forming a container which has a substantially rigid body and includes bail receiving means mounted in the container wall to receive a carrying bail, and is subsequently to have closure caps on at least one end thereof. Broadly stated the method comprises continuously Winding a strip of liner ply into container shape and then continuously winding at least one strip of body stock about the liner ply and adhesively sealing the body stock to the liner ply. A strip of label ply is rates Patent ice continuously wound about the body stock and is adhesively sealed thereto. Bail receiving means are inserted through at least one of the label ply and body stock prior to winding thereof such that the receiving means extend outwardly and open at the container wall at substantially diametrically opposed positions upon winding. The resultant member is then cut to size. it is also proposed to practice the method of the invention in which the plies are helically wound about each other. More specifically it is contemplated to provide a method in which the bail receiving means are inserted through the label ply alone prior to winding, and to form the liner ply of a foil and paper laminate and fold the marginal edge portion back against itself prior to winding so as to form the foil-to-foil liner seam described above.

The utility of the container of the invention is readily apparent in view of the unlimited uses to which containers having bail carrying means can and have been put. The novel construction of this container resides precisely in the fact that all these advantages are retained in a fabricated multi-ply container which is appreciably less expensive to manufacture. Also, the novel method contributes greatly to its desirability since the bail carrying means can be structurally mounted within the walls of the container in the same continuous operation in which the container itself is formed. Thus, the bail receiving means are structurally retained in the container wall in such a manner as to allow normal use without damage to the structural integrity of the container.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described hereinbelow with reference to the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a partially schematic side elevation of one embodiment of the apparatus for forming the container body according to the method of the invention;

FIG. 1A is a fragmentary plan view of the label ply having bail receiving means inserted therein taken substantially along lines 1A1A of FIG. 1;

FIG. 1B is a'section taken substantially along lines 1B1B of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2 is partially schematic view of a second embodiment of the apparatus for forming container bodies according to the method of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a container of the invention;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross section of the container taken substantially along lines 4-4 of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a helically wound container.

The body construction of a container 10 (FIG. 3) of the type contemplated by the present invention is best shown by describing a method of making a container with particular reference to FIG. 4. Initially a web of liner '11 which preferably conists of an aluminum foil and paper laminate is unwound from a roll 12 and is wound about an adjacent stationary mandrel 13. As the liner 'ill is unwound from the roll 12 it is first fed through a glue applicator 14 which coats a marginal edge portion '15 of the liner web on the paper surface thereof with an adhesive. After passing through the glue applicator 14 'the liner web it is fed through a plow 16 which receives the adhesive coated marginal edge portion 15 of the liner web and turns it back against itself such that a paper-topaper adhesive seal is effected on this turned back marginal portion. As the marginal edge portion 15 is being folded back against itself the opposite marginal portion 1'7 of the liner web is passing through a second glue applicator 13 which is applying a coating of adhesive onto the foil surface thereof. The liner Web 11 is then fed axially relative to the mandrel 13 and is inserted into wrap shoe 19 which wraps the liner web on the mandrel with the aluminum foil surface facing toward the surface of the mandrel. As the wrapped liner web emerges from the wrap shoe 19 the folded back marginal portion 15, which is folded back against itself with its folded surface on the outside of the fold, will be overlapped with the opposite marginal portion 17 such that the adjoining convolutions of the liner web are in foil-to-foil contact and thereby form a liner web seam 243 which engages both side edges of the laminate beneath the foil surface which now defines the interior of the container body. Immediately upon emerging from the wrap shoe 19 the overlapping marginal portions of the adjacent convolutions of the liner web are heat and pressure sealed by a heated sealing wheel 21 which is positioned to contact the liner ply seam causing the foil-to-foil interface in the seam as described above. Since one marginal edge portion makes foil-to-foil contact with the opposite marginal edge portion of the adjoining turn of the liner web 11, the edges of the liner web will not be exposed near the surface of the resultant container and hence there will be no danger of seepage by the contents of the container edgewise through the paper component of the liner ply end into the paper backing of the liner ply.

The wound liner ply is axially slid along the mandrel 13 to a point where a strip of body stock 22, which consists of chip board or solid kraft board, is wound and adhesively sealed to the already wound liner ply. The strip of body stock is withdrawn from a roll 23 and is passed through a glue applicator 24 where a coating of adhesive is applied to the strip of body stock. The thuscoated strip 22 is then passed through a second Wrap shoe 25 which tightly wraps the body stock about the liner web 11 such that it is adhesively sealed in surfaceto-surface contact against the paper backing of the line ply. It is noteworthy that although the container of the invention is shown and described as being constructed with a single ply of body stock, it is within the contemplation of the invention that if greater strength is desired the container may be constructed with several plies of body stock without departing from the scope of the invention. Upon emerging from the second wrap shoe 25 the strip of body stock is wound with the edges of adjacent convolutions in abutting relationship, as opposed to the overlapping seam which was formed with the liner ply.

The thus-formed continuous tubular body is advanced continuously along the mandrel where a label ply 26 is continuously wound about the body stock. The label ply 26 is preferably formed of an aluminum foil and pa per laminate in which the paper ply of the laminate is substantially heavier than that used in the liner ply laminate. It is also contemplated that this label ply could be constructed of a strip of body stock similar to the strip 22 of the body stock described above. As the label ply is stripped from a roll 27 it is fed through a glue applicator 28 which coats one surface of the label ply with a suitable adhesive. (If the label ply is an aluminum foil and paper laminate, it is the paper surface which is coated.) As the label ply 26 is continuously fed toward the already formed tubular body, bail receiving means 29 are deposited through the label ply at predetermined spaced intervals by means of a suitable inserting apparatus 30.

Referring now to FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, the bail receiving means 259 are comprised essentially of a tubular portion 31 which extends through the label ply 26 and opens outwardly at the exterior surface of the container wall, and a flange portion 32 of greater diameter than the tubular portion 31 which is disposed interiorly and will be structurally confined within the inner wall of the container. In the embodiment shown the label ply is preferably perforated in advance with openings at predetermined positions on the label ply such that the bail receiving means can be simply inserted into the openings by means of the apparatus or by hand immediately prior to winding the label ply about the body stock.

The label ply with the bail receiving means inserted therein is fed through a third wrap shoe 33 which tightly wraps the label web about the body stock 2.2 such that the paperboard backing of the label ply is in surface-to-surface contact with the body stock. Thus the aluminum foil surface of the label ply 26 is exposed exteriorly and defines the outer surface of the wall of the container and has the marginal edge portion of the adjacent convolutions of the label ply in overlapping relationship to form a label ply seam 3%. Immediately adjacent the third wrap shoe 33 there is located a heated sealing wheel 35 which is arranged to contact the label ply seam 34 and seal it.

The thus-formed continuous tubular body is advanced along the mandrel where it is engaged by a flying saw 36 which travels axially with the tube to cut off elongated lengths thereof. Completing the method in the ordinary way, the cut tubular body members are passed to a blower to remove any dust which may have accumulated during the cutting operation and then passed to the capping means for heat sealing and crimping the closure cap on one end of the cut tubular member. The tubular members are next passed to filling means for filling the container with the desired contents and finally to a second capping means where the end closure cap is heat sealed and crimped to the open end of the container to form a closed package.

Referring now to FIG. 2, apparatus is schematically shown for making a helically wound container (FIG, 5) of the invention. Initially a web of liner 38 which preferably consists of an aluminum foil and paper laminate is unwound from a roll 39 and is helically wound about an adjacent stationary mandrel 40. Prior to winding the liner web 38 on the roll 39, marginal portions on each side of the foil surface of the liner web are coated with a suitable adhesive. As the liner web 38 is unwound from the roll 39, it is first fed through a plow 41 which receives a marginal edge portion of the liner web and turns it back against itself. As shown, the liner web 38 is to be fed to the mandrel and helically wound thereon with the aluminum foil surface facing down in direct contact with the mandrel. Hence, after passing through the plow 41 a marginal portion 42 of aluminum foil now faces up along the entire length of one edge of the liner web 38. Immediately upon emerging from the plow 411 the marginal portion 42 passes through .a roller 43 which substantially flattens the fold.

The liner web 38 next passes through an applicator 44 which applies an adhesive to one or both edges of the foil surface for the purpose of facilitating the making of a foil-to-foil seal when the liner is wound around the mandrel 4h. The liner 38 is then preferably passed through a heater 45 which serves to dry and remove the solvent from the adhesive that has just been applied. The liner web 38 is then passed to the mandrel 40 where it is helically wound thereon at approximately a forty-five degree angle to the axis of the horizontally extending mandrel. With each convolution of the liner web 38 upon the mandrel 41 the unfolded marginal portion of the liner web overlaps the marginal portion 42 of a previously wound convolution of the liner web an amount subs-tantially equal to the width of the marginal portion 42. As the liner web 38 overlaps a previously wound convolution, the overlapping portions are heat and pressure sealed by a heated wheel 46 which is positioned to follow the path of the helical overlappings as the liner is wound, and compresses the adhesive coated marginal portions together such that a closed sea-m 47 is formed having a foil-to-foil interface. Thus, the resultant seam 47 is substantially the same as seam 20 described above, and the resultant container will be substantiallyimpervious to moisture seepage from the contents of the container.

The wound liner ply 38 is axially slid along and rotated on the mandrel 44 by means of a pulley and belt arrangement 48. A strip of body stock 49 taken from a roll 50 is helically wound about the liner ply 38 at substantially the same angle as the liner web was wound on the mandrel 45 As the strip of body stock 49 is removed from the roller 50 it passes over a glue applicator 51 which applies a coating of glue on that surface of the body stock which is to make direct contact with the wound liner ply 38 to enable the body stock to be adhesively sealed to the liner, The strip of body stock 49 is preferably wound with its edges in abutment and with its abutting edges axially spaced from the closed seam 47. At this point a second strip of body stock could be applied to the body stock ply 49 in a similar manner.

The wound liner ply 38 and the ply of body stock 49 are axially slid further along the mandrel 40 to a point where a label ply web which can consist of aluminum foil and paper laminate or a strip of body stock as described above in relation to the first embodiment. The label web 52 is withdrawn from a roll 53 and is passed through a glue applicator 54 which applies an adhesive coating on one surface of the label web. As shown, openings 55 are precut into the label web and are spaced from each other such that upon helically winding they Will be positioned at diametrically opposite positions on the container wall. After passing through the glue applicator 54 the web is fed through or under an inserting apparatus 56. The function of the inserting apparatus is to deposit bail receiving means 57 into the openings 55. After the bail receiving means are positioned in the label web 52 the label web is then helically wound on the body stock 49 in substantially the same manner as the plies of body stock were wound on the liner ply 38, If the label web is formed of an aluminum foil and paper laminate, the aluminum foil surface of the label ply is disposed exteriorly and defines the outer surface of the wall of the resultant container, and the label web 52 has its marginal portion which is adjacent to the marginal edge portion of the previously wound strip in overlapping relationship and adhesively sealed together to form a label seam 53.

The pulley and belt assembly 48 continues to move the laminated cylinder 59 of body tube stock, which has been formed by the preceding winding operation, axially along the mandrel 40. A flying saw 60 next engages the cylinder 59 to cut off elongated lengths thereof. The method is then completed in a similar manner as described in the first embodiment.

A detailed view of the construction of the wall of the container is shown on a large scale in FIG. 4. A container may have a coating on the surface area of the interior of the container to provide corrosion protection and to insure against moisture seepage through tiny pinholes which are often formed in thin metallic material. The liner ply may consist of foil 61 having thickness within the range of 0.00035 to 0.001 and is preferably laminated to a paper 62 with a casein-latex base adhesive. A typical paper used is a 2025 lb. machine-glazed kraft. As clearly shown, the liner ply seam 20 (which is substantially the same as the liner ply seam 47) is formed by folding one marginal portion of the liner web back against itself, overlapping an opposite marginal portion 17 of an adjacent convolution of the liner ply in an amount equal to the width of the marginal portion 15 and adhesively sealing the overlapped portion. The result is a foil-to-foil seal along the entire length of the liner ply seam 2% which is substantially moisture impervious since edges 63 and 64 of adjacent convo-lutions of liner are enclosed within the Wall of the container beneath the liner. Hence danger of seepage into paper backing 65 of the laminated liner ply 11 is substantially eliminated. The ply of body stock 22 which is adhesively sealed to the liner ply 11 can be made from chip board or solid kraft boards; for cheaper construction, newsboard has proven satisfactory. The thickness of each ply of body stock ranges in typical cases from 0.0095" to 0.026" in thickness. As described above the adjacent edges of the ply iofbody stock are butted at butt joint 66.

The label ply 26 consists of aluminum foil 67 of say from 0.0003" to 0.0015 in thickness and as shown is laminated to a paperboard 68. The paperboard 68 is preferably much heavier than the paper used in the liner ply and could advantageously be constructed of substantially the same material used for the body stock. Alternatively, body stock could be used as the label ply without the aluminum foil laminated to the outer surface thereof.

' The body stock ply 22 can be adhesively sealed to the label ply 26 and liner ply 11 by animal glue, casein-latex emulsion, vinyl-copolymer emulsion, sodium silicate, or any desired adhesive. Of course, the choice of adhesive is important in determining the ultimate strength or flexibility which may be desired in such a container.

As shown in FIG. 4, the bail receiving means 29 consists of the tubular portion 31 and the flange portion 32 as described above. The flange portion prevents the bail receiving means from pulling out through the opening formed in the label plies and is mounted within the wall of the container between the body stock 22 and the label ply 26. By so positioning the bail receiving means and arranging them such that they open outwardly in diametrically opposite positions on the container wall a bail 69 can be inserted into the bail receiving means 29 with the respective end portions 70 and 71 of the bail extending into the tubular portion 31 of the bail receiving means. End closure caps 72 and 73 are crimped about the respective ends of the container.

A container constructed in this manner thus provides all the advantages achieved in multi-ply containers of which the principal one is its economical construction and nevertheless provides integrally within the container wall a bail receiving means which does not interfere with the fluid-tight characteristics of these containers. Nevertheless, the carrying bail can be inserted into the bail receiving means in the usual manner and the container can be carried thereby without fear of either interfering with the contents of the package or tearing or ripping the bail receiving means through the container wall.

As shown in FIG. 5, the container can be constructed by helically Winding the plies as described in the method above and the resultant body construction will be essentially the same as that shown in FIG. 4 with the exception of the plies being helically oriented about the axis of the container.

We claim:

1. A method of forming a container having a substantially rigid body which includes bail receiving means mounted in the container wall to receive a carrying bail and on at least one end of which closure caps are subsequently to be secured comprising:

(a) continuously winding a strip of liner ply into container shape,

(b) continuously winding at least one strip of body stock about said liner ply,

(c) adhesively sealing said body stock to said liner ply,

(d) continuously winding a strip of label ply about said body stock,

(e) adhesively sealing said label ply to said body stock,

(f) inserting bail receiving means through at least one of said label ply and body stock prior to winding thereofsuch that said means extending outwardly and opening at the container wall at substantially diametrically opposed positions upon winding, and

(g) cutting the resultant member to size.

2. A method of forming a container as in claim 1 wherein said plies are helically wound into container shape.

3. A method of forming a container as in claim 1 wherein said bail receiving means are inserted through said label ply only.

4. A method of forming a container as in claim 1 wherein said liner ply is a foil and paper laminate and prior to said winding a marginal portion along one side edge is folded back against itself with its foil surface on the outside of the fold and is overlapped with a marginal portion of an adjacent convolution to form a liner ply seam therebetween which encloses both side edges of the Vlarninatebeneath the foil surface of the container body.

5. A method of forming a container having a tubular substantially rigid body which includes bail receiving means mounted in the container wall to receive a carrying bail and on at least one end of which closure caps are subsequently to be secured comprising:

(a) continuously winding a strip of liner ply about a mandrel such that marginal portions of adjacent convolutions overlap,

(b) adhesively sealing said overlapped liner marginal portions while advancing said liner along said mandrel to form a liner ply seam,

(c) continuously winding a strip of body stock about said liner ply while advancing along said mandrel,

(d) adhesively sealing said body stock to said liner (e) continuously winding a strip of label ply about said body stock while advancing along said mandrel, (f) adhesively sealing said label ply to said body stock, (g) inserting bail receiving means through at least one of said label ply and body stock prior to winding thereof such that said means extending outwardly and opening at the container Wall at substantially diametrically opposed positions upon winding, and (h) cutting the member to size. 6. A method according to claim 5 wherein said plies are helically wound about each other.

'7. A method according to claim 5 wherein said bail receiving means are inserted through said label ply only.

No references cited.

FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner. 

1. A METHOD OF FORMING A CONTAINER HAVING A SUBSTANTIALLY RIGID BODY WHICH INCLUDES BAIL RECEIVING MEANS MOUNTED IN THE CONTAINER WALL TO RECEIVE A CARRYING BAIL AND ON AT LEAST ONE END OF WHICH CLOSURE CAPS ARE SUBSEQUENTLY TO BE SECURED COMPRISING: (A) CONTINUOUSLY WINDING A STRIP OF LINER PLY INTO CONTAINER SHAPE, (B) CONTINUOUSLY WINDING AT LEAST ONE STRIP OF BODY STOCK ABOUT SAID LINER PLY, (C) ADHESIVELY SEALING SAID BODY STOCK TO SAID LINER PLY, (D) COTINUOUSLY WINDING A STRIP OF LABEL PLAY ABOUT SAID BODY STOCK, (E) ADHESIVELY SEALING SAID LABEL PLY TO SAID BODY STOCK, (F) INSERTING BAIL RECEIVING MEANS THROUGH AT LEAST ONE OF SAID LABEL PLY AND BODY STOCK PRIOR TO WINDING THEREOF SUCH THAT SAID MEANS EXTENDING OUTWARDLY AND OPENING AT THE CONTAINER WALL AT SUBSTANTIALLY DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED POSITIONS UPON WINDING, AND (G) CUTTING THE RESULTANT MEMBER TO SIZE. 